Democracy & Security with President Laura Chinchilla

Democracy & Security with President Laura Chinchilla

In 2010, Laura Chinchilla became the first woman elected President of Costa Rica — a country that has long stood as one of the hemisphere's most durable democracies and one of the few full democracies anywhere in the world. As President, Chinchilla governed at the intersection of security and democratic principles , drawing on years of scholarly work and a deep belief that effective governance cannot come at the cost of the rule of law. Today, as democratic backsliding spreads across Latin America — and as leaders increasingly trade rights for the promise of order — her perspective carries urgent weight. Costa Rica, once a model, is no longer untouchable. WOLA President Carolina Jiménez Sandoval and Venezuela Program Director Laura Dib sit down with President Chinchilla to explore the hard questions: What does the Costa Rican model actually teach us about achieving security without militarization? How do you govern democratically when public patience is wearing thin? And what does it mean when even a beacon of democracy begins to dim?

Democracia & Representación con Vicepresidenta Francia Márquez Mina

**This episode is in Spanish. To watch the video with English subtitles, visit wola.org. En nuestro segundo episodio, "Democracia y Representación", la vicepresidenta de Colombia, Francia Márquez Mina —la primera mujer afrodescendiente en ocupar la vicepresidencia del país y una de las pocas mujeres afrodescendientes que han alcanzado ese cargo en la región— reflexiona sobre su trayectoria desde el activismo ambiental y social hasta los más altos niveles del poder político. Desde esa perspectiva, habla con franqueza sobre lo que significa ejercer liderazgo dentro de instituciones que históricamente han excluido a comunidades étnicas como la suya, y sobre lo que ese camino revela acerca de la representación, la democracia y la igualdad en Colombia y en América Latina en general. Al acercarse el final de su mandato, comparte las lecciones del primer Decenio Internacional de la Naciones Unidas para los Afrodescendientes, el papel del liderazgo de las mujeres en la construcción de democracias másinclusivas y su visión para el futuro de la relación entre Colombia y Estados Unidos.

Democracy & Transition with President Bernardo Arévalo of Guatemala

In our first episode, Democracy & Transition, Guatemala's President Bernardo Arévalo reflects on leading his country through a fragile democratic transition—defending institutions under attack, delivering on a reform mandate with minimal congressional support, and remaining committed to peaceful governance despite relentless resistance from entrenched corruption networks. Be sure to follow Democracy& and The Washington Office on Latin America for future episodes! Support WOLA's work by visiting https://www.wola.org/donate-now/

Announcing Democracy&: A New Podcast from the Washington Office on Latin America

In this series from the Washington Office on Latin America (WOLA), prominent decision-makers from across the Americas—those who have been at the heart of democratic governance—share personal reflections and insights on the meaning, challenges, and future of democracy in the region. In each episode, members of the WOLA team sit down with a current or former political figure from the Americas to explore democracy through different lenses: what it means to them, the challenges it faces, and why it remains essential today. Each conversation pairs democracy with a new dimension—transition, justice, leadership, and beyond.